Cryptocurrency brought us peer-to-peer payments that continue to elevate participation in the global economy for millions of people without access to traditional banking services. The rise of decentralized finance (DeFi) promises to further expand access to financial services, including savings, lending, derivatives, asset management and insurance products.
This innovation, which empowers financial inclusion, should be allowed to flourish in a regulated environment where individuals and institutions are protected and suspicious activity is identified and reported. But how do you regulate these decentralized products without completely removing the core attributes of financial inclusion and decentralization?
Christopher Harding is the chief compliance officer of Civic. After spending a decade with leading accounting firm KPMG in various risk management roles worldwide, he joined digital banking firm Lending Club where he developed, formalized and implemented new risk governance structures and risk management processes.